Dasuki Fulfills Bail Conditions, Should Be Released Today – Lawyer

The detained former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.), has met all the bail conditions imposed on him by the Federal High Court in Abuja on July 2, 2018, his lawyer, Mr. Ahmed Raji (SAN), told The PUNCH on Tuesday.

Raji said that a letter by the Deputy Chief Registrar of the Federal High Court confirming that Dasuki had fulfilled all the bail conditions would today (Tuesday) be presented to the Department of State Service which has been holding him in custody since December 29, 2015.

The lawyer, responding to The PUNCH’s inquiry about the status of Dasuki’s bid to meet the bail conditions, Raji said in a text message sent to our correspondent that the ex-NSA was expected to be released as soon as the DCR’s letter was delivered to the DSS on Tuesday morning.

Raji’s text message sent to The PUNCH read, “The letter written by DCR confirming that all conditions for the bail have been met will be delivered to DSS this morning.

“Upon delivery of the letter, the DSS is to release him in line with the order of the court.”

The Federal High Court in Abuja had on July 2 granted bail to Dasuki from the custody of the Department of State Service, where he had been detained for two and a half years.

Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu, who granted bail to Dasuki in the sum of N200m with two sureties in like sum, ruled that “the long and continued detention” of the applicant since December 29, 2015, could not be justified.

Although the judge rejected Dasuki’s prayer for a public apology and an award of N5bn compensation, she rejected all the grounds canvassed by the three respondents to justify the ex-NSA’s continued detention.

Apart from granting bail to the applicant in the sum of N200m with two sureties in like sum, the judge also attached other bail conditions including, that the sureties must be residents of Abuja.

She said the sureties could be civil servants not less than Grade Level 16 in the employment of the Federal Government or private citizens not employed by government.

If the sureties are Federal Government employees, they will deposit the certified copies of their letters of appointment and last promotion letters with the court, the judge said.

But the judge said if they are private citizens who are not employed by the Federal Government, they must own properties in the Abuja metropolis and must submit the original title documents to the registry of the court.

Such sureties are also to submit to the court, their evidence of tax payments the years 2015, 2016 and 2017.

The judge also ordered that either of one of two sureties to be presented or Dasuki himself, should pay the sum of N100m to the court’s account which could only be taken back after the completion of the case against him, to guarantee the bail.

While the court ordered that Dasuki’s passport must remain in the custody of the court, it also ordered bailiffs to verify the addresses of the sureties.

The judge also ruled that should the DSS have cause to question Dasuki after his release, he could only be invited and questioned between 9am and 6pm only on weekdays.

The judgment came about one year and nine months after the Economic Community of West African States Court of Justice in Abuja, in its own verdict delivered on October 4, 2016, ordering his unconditional release from illegal custody but which the DSS did not obey.